Other members of the all-Republican County Commission also are making their views known. Commissioner John Tobia has been working closely with Infantini in a variety of ways, while County Commission Chair Rita Pritchett and Commissioner Jim Barfield have contributed to Smith's campaign.

For some, this GOP primary and several others on Tuesday's ballot amount to a referendum on how conservative voters want their elected officials to be — to the right of center or far to the right of center.

Brevard Republican Executive Committee Vice Chair Nick Tomboulides doesn't buy the argument that it's moderate Republicans vs. Tea Party Republicans facing off. He sees it more as a resurgence of a "purer form" of conservative Republicans embodied by Infantini and several other Republicans on the primary ballot.

"The conservatives in this county were a sleeping giant waiting to be awakened, and now we are," Tomboulides said.

Tomboulides added that, in recent years, the GOP "moved away from needs, and focused more on wants" — a trend he wants to reverse.

Curt Smith participates in a recent FLORIDA TODAY candidate forum for Brevard County Commission District 4 at Eastern Florida State College's Cocoa campus.

Malcolm Denemark, Malcolm Denemark/FLORIDA TODAY

"My hope is that we see less reckless spending and fewer tax increases," Tomboulides said.

But the prominent County Commission District 4 race — marked by unusually high spending and candidate-bashing fliers — is more than just a struggle for the heart and soul of Brevard's GOP. The outcome could impact how the county does business, as Infantini is pushing a fiscally conservative agenda that includes drastic spending cuts in some areas.

Election Day coverage: Check back with FLORIDA TODAY on Aug. 28 for election news and results

Looking for a coalition

Infantini anticipates an alliance with Tobia, a friend and a political adviser in this election, along with County Commission Vice Chair Kristine Isnardi, both of whom are in the second year of their first four-year term, so they are not up for re-election this year.

Infantini says, if she is elected, she "finally" will "have a voting bloc of my peers" to successfully push her agenda of dramatic budget reductions.

At the top of her targets for cuts: the Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast, which has a $1.4 million contract with the county for economic development services. Among its many roles, the EDC helps attract companies to Brevard County to create new jobs and helps businesses already here expand.

Also potentially on the chopping block: community redevelopment agencies; and some tourism-related capital projects. Infantini believes there are better ways to spend the revenue from the 5 percent tax on hotel rooms, such as infrastructure to help protect the Indian River Lagoon and the groundwater.

Another candidate who would be aligned with Infantini and Tobia — if he wins his race — is attorney Bryan Lober, who is running in another intense Republican primary against former County Commissioner Chuck Nelson in District 2. (Barfield, the District 2 incumbent, is not seeking re-election.)

Lober is self-funding his campaign with more than $85,000 in loans and in-kind contributions. His campaign has been punctuated by an array of mailings and advertisements against Nelson that can be seen as both vicious and humorous. One depicts a cartoon of Nelson sitting around a campfire alongside Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton with the headline "Democrats, Lobbyists and Special Interests Love Chuck."

The aftermath of these slugfests could have a lasting impact on the Republican Party, some warn. At first glance, they have already cut deep into the fabric of the local GOP, though similar brawls are taking place across the country as a whole, as conservatives do battle.

Aubrey Jewett, an associate professor of political science at the University of Central Florida, said, in a situation in which a political party has divisive primaries, what happens afterward will depend on how well supporters of the rival candidates put aside their differences for the good of the party.

"It can go either way," Jewett said. "They would have to get over their hurt feelings and unify. On average, they do tend to come back together" to focus on beating the other party's candidates. "But they don't always do that. In the worst-case scenario, it creates permanent divisions in the party."

Tobia, Fine back challenger

With the support of Tobia, a former Florida House member who succeeded her into the District 3 County Commission seat in 2016, Infantini is running an aggressive operation to unseat Smith.

Tobia rejects the suggestion that he is Infantini's "day-to-day adviser," but admits he is "squarely in the Team Trudie's campaign," and "working hard to help her." That, he said, includes everything from putting up campaign signs to crafting strategy on which neighborhoods to canvass.

But Smith claims that Tobia also has been helping Infantini by criticizing him during County Commission meetings.

Currently, on split votes on the all-Republican County Commission, Tobia often has been on the short end of 4-1 or 3-2 votes. He is now hoping that, if Infantini replaced Smith, he can craft a 3-2 majority with Infantini and Isnardi.

Also supporting Infantini's candidacy is Fine, R-Palm Bay, who was elected in 2016 to the District 53 Florida House seat— the same seat formerly held by Tobia, who had served four two-year terms in the House before being term-limited there.

Fine said he is backing Infantini to defeat Smith, contending the race is important because, "right now, we have two conservatives and three liberals on the County Commission."

Fine classifies Isnardi and Tobia as the conservatives, while he sees Smith, along with Barfield and Pritchett, as the liberals.

"I certainly align with (Infantini's) views more than Curt Smith's" views, Fine said. "I want conservatives on the County Commission who want to be good partners to me in fixing the (Indian River) lagoon."

Fine said, if Infantini joins the County Commission, he expects to see "a greater prioritization of needs vs. wants" in County Commission budget discussions.

Additionally, Fine said, "I'd expect sales of AstroTurf to go down" if Smith loses. That's a reference to Smith's support for putting AstroTurf on football, soccer and lacrosse fields at Viera Regional Park, using money from the county's 5 percent Tourist Development Tax on hotel rooms and other short-term rentals. The project is partly aimed at attracting more youth sports tournaments to the area.

Another outside organization, called the Committee to Protect Florida, has been funding roadside campaign signs that read: "Liberal Curt Smith Raised Your Taxes." The signs mimic the design and color scheme of Smith's own signs, and many were placed adjacent to Smith's signs.

That message is a major point of contention.

While the county budget has increased and the total raised through property taxes has increased, partly because of rising property values, Smith says the tax rate decreased during his tenure as a commissioner, and many property owners have seen reduced tax bills.

This week on Eye on Brevard, FLORIDA TODAY Engagement Editor Isadora Rangel talks with former county commissioner Trudie Infantini her run for the District 4 seat

Florida Today

Infantini cites the state's definition of property tax increases as evidence that Brevard had tax increases during two years while Smith was in office. She also points to increases in recent years in ambulance transport fees, fire assessment fees, solid waste fees and stormwater fees. The County Commission raised most of these fees after they had not changed for a number of years.

Tim Deratany, a former member of the Florida House and Florida Senate, said he believes it is "unprecedented in the history of Brevard County" for a County Commission race to attract so much attention, including from outside political committees.

Once an Infantini-backer in previous elections, now a Smith supporter in this race, Deratany cautions against the idea of an unwavering coalition and says Tobia should not feel assured that Infantini and Isnardi will routinely vote with him.

"Trudie and Kristine are their own people," Deratany said, and will vote the way they want to, regardless of Tobia's views.

Door-to-door campaigning

The relationship between Infantini and Smith was once close.

Smith, a resident of Melbourne, retired in 2013 after owning a Maaco auto-painting franchise in Melbourne for more than 26 years.

Four years ago, while still District 3 County Commissioner, Infantini was knocking on doors in neighboring Commission District 4, asking voters to cast their ballots for Smith, then a political newbie in a seven-person Republican primary.

Smith won that primary, with 28.9 percent of the vote, as his closest competitor received 17.2 percent. He then won the general election against a Democrat and a Libertarian Party candidate, with 63.5 percent of the vote, joining Infantini on the County Commission.

But Infantini wasn't thrilled with how things turned out, as she anticipated a voting alliance with Smith that never materialized.

She left the commission in 2016 because of term limits, having served two four-year terms. But, now she's back, knocking on many of those same doors in District 4 after moving into the area in Viera earlier this year.

"I decided I'd take matters into my own hand, and run against (Smith) this time, and knock on those doors for me," Infantini said.

Infantini said that, after Smith was elected, he took a "180-degree turn" on his campaign promises.

Smith sees it differently.

"I had thought I would be aligned with her" when they served together for two years on the County Commission from November 2014 to November 2016, Smith said. "But, shortly before I became a commissioner, I realized she had isolated herself" by her actions and votes as a commissioner.

Smith characterized Infantini as "very unproductive" as a commissioner, and said she "spent eight years doing absolutely nothing except saying 'no.' "

In response, Infantini said: "I don't have accomplishments that spend money. If you want to go out and see the park that's named after me, you're not going to find it."

Smith cited as accomplishments his work related to roads and other infrastructure, as well as job creation and efforts to clean up the Indian River Lagoon.He said he would continue those efforts if re-elected.

If Infantini wins, Smith warned, "it would be like night and day" — and not for the better.

"I think the county would look very, very differently," Smith said. "The quality of life in this county will be vastly different, depending on which one of us wins this election."

The winner will face Democrat Matt Fleming of Satellite Beach, the owner of a pressure-washing business, in the Nov. 6 general election.

This week on Eye on Brevard, Isadora Rangel talks with Brevard County Commissioner Curt Smith about the Lagoon, road repairs and his run for re-election.

Florida Today

District 4 is the most heavily Republican of the five County Commission districts, so whoever wins the GOP primary would have a political advantage in the general election against Fleming.

The district includes all or part of Indian Harbour Beach, Melbourne, Palm Shores, Rockledge and Satellite Beach, as well as sections of unincorporated Brevard, including Suntree and Viera.

An expensive campaign

The campaign has been relatively expensive for both Republican candidates, especially considering the district represents only about one-fifth of county voters.

Through Aug. 10, Smith had raised $116,393 in cash (including $10,000 of his own money) and $8,608 in in-kind contributions, and had spent $78,129.

"We've got it. We're going to spend it," Smith boasted. "I have broad support. I've got the rich and the famous and the poor and the infamous" contributing to the campaign.

Infantini raised $48,790 in cash (including $29,000 of her own money) and $739 in in-kind contributions, and had spent $47,863.

Commenting on Smith's fundraising advantage, Infantini said: "I have faith in voters seeing through his largely special-interest-funded campaign," alluding to contributions made by individuals and businesses connected with development and tourism.

Among Smith's contributors, in addition to Barfield and Pritchett, are former District 4 Commissioner Mary Bolin Lewis and the insurance business owned by former County Commissioner Robin Fisher, who is a Democrat.

There have been outside political organizations that have been doing anti-Smith political mailings and "robo-calls" that have the impact of potentially benefiting Infantini's campaign.

Smith is tired of what he describes as "the half-truths and lies" that are being disseminated in the mailers and calls. He said, if he had known how vicious the race would become in 2018, he might not have first sought elected office in 2014.

Infantini insists she is not involved in the outsider mailings and other efforts, adding that she doesn't know if the negative messages are helping or hurting her campaign. She said she believes the people behind the mailers are upset by Smith's voting record, and wanted to get her on the County Commission to "change the dynamics on the board."

But Infantini also has been the target of a negative mailings funded by Florida Strong, an outside organization, that called her "Temper Tantrum Trudie."

In a recent Facebook post, Fine questioned the connections between those mailings and a Melbourne-based organization called Business Voice.

Florida Voices is a project of the USA TODAY Network-Florida that spotlights the 2018 election issues that matter to Floridians. LEAH VOSS/TCPALM

Leah Voss, leah.voss@tcpalm.com

Business Voice Political Committee Chairman Larry McIntyre said his group, composed of small businesses and regional corporations, did give money to an outside organization to reach voters.

"We support endorsed candidates by communicating directly with voters about who local job-creators think is most prepared to serve," he said in a statement. "We decided to magnify our impact in this important election by making a contribution to a like-minded political group.”

Infantini says Business Voice is targeting her because they don't like her stance of being against the County Commission and the Economic Development Commission "picking winners and losers" when it comes to economic development incentives and contracts.

County Clerk of Courts and Infantini backer Scott Ellis isn't a fan of third-party negative mailings, saying he'd prefer to see more face-to-face debates and forums at which the candidates discuss the issues.

"It has become a war of the fliers," Ellis said.

With the way the campaign has been going, and the amounts the candidates have raised and spent, going into the final days of the primary campaign, Ellis said, "At the end, I just think they're going to napalm each other."